Method of and means for folding paper products



1937? I. TORNBERG 2,070,324

METHOD OF AND MEANS FOR FOLDING PAPER PRODUCTS Filed July 22, 1932" 2Sheets-Sheet l Z6 ladar azwe/y M r-27v Feb. 9, 1937.- TORNBERG METHOD OFAND MEANS FOR FOLDING PAPER -PRODUCTS Filed July 22, 1932 '2Sheets-Sheet 2 L4 In:

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zPetented Feb. 9, i937 UNITED STATES METHOD OF AND MEANS FOR FOLDINGPAPER PRODUCTS mam- Tornberg, Plainileld, N; 1., assignor to" WoodNewspaper Machinery Corporation,

New York, N. Y., a corporation of Virginia Application July 22, 1932,Serial No. 623,920

Claims. (oi. 270-65) This-invention relates to the multiple folding ofpapers, for magazine and book work particularly, but-is capable of usein newspaper printing and the like.

5 The principal object of the invention is to provide a method and meansby which a fold, preferably the last fold, can be made with morefacility, than has been the case heretofore.

Other objects of theinvention are to provide a m cutter, on the foldingcouple for cutting through a' plurality of thicknesses of the productbeing folded at a point at which the last and most difllcultiold willcome, to prevent the bunching of the paper at the corner between thelast two folds, and to provide an improved folded product having anotch'at that corner instead of a bun- I sling fold made up of a largenumber of sheets bent over each other in two directions at that corner.v

7 Other objects and advantages of the invention will appea rhereinafter. I

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, in which Fig, l isa transverse sectional view of a folding couple, illustrating apreferred form 01' the mechanism of this invention, showing the rest ofthe folding mechanism diagrammatically in end elevation;

Fig. 2 is an elevation of thefolding couple;

Fig. 3 is a view of the web which is to be folded,

shown with the preparatory cut made;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the preliminary folded sheet in theposition-in which it is being tucked into the folding rollers, and

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the .finished product.

In the production of magazinea books or papers in which the sheets arefolded a number of times, it is customary to produce. the first fold inthe 4; direction of travel and the second fold by a rotary foldingmechanism. In high speed printing presses this is as far as the productis folded. In magazine and book work an additional told is requiredfrequently in order to make a product 5 of a smaller size page and alarger number of pages from the same size sheet. "The folds are malefirst in one direction and then in the other and with each fold thenumber of sheets to be folded the next time is doubled and consequentlyso the thickness of the papers being folded is doubled. Thus it becomesincreasingly difllcult to fold and product a neat corner; the corner atthe end of the last fold and in the middle of the next to thelast foldis made somete what bungling in character because it is difficult Infact usually to hold the paper and fold it in a neat form under theconditions.

This invention is designed to correct this dimculty by providing morefreedom for the paper at. that corner, thus allowing it to be foldedeasily 5 and naturally in a smooth and, fiat condition.

Referring to Fig.4, the invention is shownas appliedto an ordinary typeof folding machine throughout a part of the course \of the web. That is,the web Wis fed down over the former i 10 and shaped into the first foldby the form rolls 2, folding the web lengthwise. Thereafter it proceedsto the cutting and folding couple comprising the folding cylinder 3 andthe cutting cylinder d. Boxes 5 for rubbers are located on oppositesides '5 of the folding cylinder 3. These boxes carry full lengthcutting rubbers I for cooperation with the usual cutting blade 8 of thecutting cylinder to sever the continuous web into sheet lengths.

r The folding. cylinder is provided with short 2 boxes 9 for carryingshort cutting rubbers it, these beinglocated at the longitudinal centerof the folding cylinder and diametrically opposite each other and aquarter the way around the cylinder from thecutting boxes 5. On the.cut- 25 ting cylinder there is a short cutting mire ii. placeddiametrically opposite the main cutting wife 8.

The folding cylinder is provided with the usual rotary folding blade l3folding the product into 3G the folding rollers it. From there theproduct is guided by guides l5 around the left hand folding roll andbetween it and an additional shaping roll Ill. The product is shown aspassing between the folding roller it in a vertical direction and 35nowpassesbetween apair of mils it and it in horizontal direction over apair of transverse horizontal foldingrolls 81. This product comes upagainst a stop i9 which leaves it in the proper position to be presseddown between the rolls it 40 by a vertically reciprocating folding bladeill.

' Although only one folding roll i1 is shown it is to be understood thata pair of them is located here in the same horizontal plane. The productP is shown in Fig. 1 as supported on these rolls ii and about to receiveits final fold from the blade it which moves down between the rolls ii.

It will be obvious that the edge of the product which comes up againstthe stop it is a folded edge and it has to be doubled over on itselfwhich bunches the paper at that point and makes it difflcult to fold theproduct into the folding rolls M.

It will be seen, however, that after the sheet is cut by the blade 8 aslit 8 is cut into the sheet as between the longitudinal edges of thesheet.. This is shown as a single slit half way between the edges of thesheet, because that is the point at which this slit is desired forfolding the product shown in Fig. along the line X. The principle of theinvention can be carried out in any way without departing from thisinvention by forming one or more slits where needed in the web prior tofolding to come at a folded edge or corner to facilitate the bending orfolding of such edge or .corner. This is a short slit preferably anddoes not weaken the paper and-it comes of course in the middle of amargin of the folded product. This slit comes at the center part of theedge which bears against the stop l9 and is located along that doublededge and at the center thereof. Therefore, when the blade I 8 comesdown, this slit provides a weakness in the fold at that point andprevents the necessity of stretching the outside layer of paper at.thatpoint over the inside layer which is folded within it. This greatlyfacilitates the final fold as it goes through the rollers H.

I have shown this invention as applied to a particular type of foldingmachine but, of course, it can be applied'to that type in'which thefirst fold which is made over the former I could be made to double thenumber of sheets with a fold through the center of the former. In thiscase a slitter can be used as usual along the top center of the former.In other words this invention is applicable to folders for making theusual newspaper of tabloid size as well as to folders for makingnewspapers of the usual'size shown in the drawings.

The slit S in the folded product facilitates the production of the lastfold by freeing the paper where it is doubled the last time at thecorner. This slit leaves the several thicknesses at the corner free fromeach other so that they will not bind and produce an undesirablethickness at that point.

Although I have illustrated and described only one form of the inventionI am aware of the fact that modifications can be made therein by anyperson skilled in the art without departing from the scope of theinvention as expressed in the claims. Therefore I do not wish to belimited in this respect otherwise than as set forth in the claims, butwhat I do claim is:

1. The method of folding papers which consists in slitting a web at apoint at which the end of the last folded edge is to be located toweaken the folded product at that point and facilitate the production ofthe last fold.

2. The method of facilitating the folding of a sheet a plurality oftimes which consists in slitting a web prior to cutting it into sheets,at a point at which two folds are to cross each other.

3. The method of facilitating the folding of sheets which consists inproviding a short slit centrally and transversely through each sheetalongthe line at which one fold is to be made and crossing the line atwhich another fold is to be made.

4. The method of folding sheets which consists in cutting a double sheettransversely to form a short slit midway between its edges, folding thedouble sheet through the said slit along the slit, and then folding thesheet transversely to the length of the slit and through the slit tofree. the last folded edges of the product from each other andfacilitate its folding.

5. In a folding machine, the combination of a former and forming rollsadapted to double a sheet longitudinally, a folding couple for receivingthe doubled sheet, a pair of folding rolls cooperating with the foldingcouple and its blade to fold the doubled product transversely to thefirst fold, a guide for guiding the twice folded product out of thefolding rolls laterally, an additional pair of folding rolls havingtheir axes at right angles to the last named pair in position forreceiving the twice folded product, a blade for forcing the productthrough the last named pair of folding rolls to fold the productlongitudinally, and means for slitting the sheet before it is folded, atthe end of the last folded edge of the product.

ISIDOR TORNBERG.

